Chiding Tendulkar, Thackeray asked him what made him utter the 'single cheeky' (a quickie single run) of politics while expressing his pride at being a Maharashtrian before the media last week.

'With that one statement, you became 'run out' in the pitch of Marathi minds,' he pointed out.

Delivering a crash course in history to the cricketer, Thackeray pointed out that when Mumbai was won for Maharashtra 'with a lot of struggle and the supreme sacrifice of 105 people, Tendulkar was not even born'.

According to Thackeray, cricketers may talk lofty things about the country, but ultimately play only for themselves.

'Do cricketers (like you) ever bother about the problems confronting the country, the inflation, slums proliferation in Mumbai, the influx of people from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Bangladeshi Muslims?' Thackeray demanded.

The Sena supremo signed off with 'a friendly advice, in your own interest' to keep off politics.